Published: Friday, September 27, 2013 at 05:07 PM.

For his part, Clifford is delighted at the improvements Cho, Higgins and majority owner Michael Jordan helped the team make in the offseason.

“We upped our talent level and we have a great deal of depth,” Clifford said.

Point guard Kemba Walker, off-guard Gerald Henderson and small forward Michael Kidd-Gilchrist are slated to return to the starting lineup, with Zeller and McRoberts competing for power forward and Jefferson expected to be the starting center.

With veterans Ramon Sessions, Jannero Pargo, Ben Gordon, Anthony Tolliver and Brendan Haywood expected to join youthful Jeff Taylor and Bismack Biyombo off the bench and it’s easy to see Clifford will have options.

It’s a chore Clifford embraces, though he also recognizes it’ll be tough.

“I haven’t been a head coach long, but what I’ve learned is I’ve got to play the guys who it feels right in here,” Clifford said while pointing to his heart. “We’ll work on that a lot. How we start the year may not be how we finish the year.

“But we brought back the right guys and we’ve added significant pieces.”

CHARLOTTE – Since the Charlotte Bobcats’ franchise has only one winning record – and one postseason appearance – in its nine-year history, it’s hard to be too optimistic about the team’s prospects in any given year.

Especially when you’re two years removed from the worst winning percentage (.106) in league when they went 7-59 during the lockout-shortened 2011-12 season.

But new coach Steve Clifford, team president Rod Higgins and general manager Rich Cho are extremely upbeat as training camp begins Tuesday in Asheville with an eight-game preseason slate to start Oct. 8 against the Atlanta Hawks in Asheville.

“We have enough talent to have a good year,” Clifford said Wednesday during a luncheon at Sullivan’s restaurant in Charlotte. “If they have the right attitude and they play hard and we have the right culture, then it can work out well this season.”

An offseason highlighted by the hiring of veteran assistant Clifford off the Los Angeles Lakers’ coaching staff, the drafting of Cody Zeller out of Indiana, the signing of Utah Jazz free agent Al Jefferson and the re-signing of Bobcats’ unrestricted free agents Gerald Henderson and Josh McRoberts is the cause of the optimism.

How excited are they?

Cho is entering his 16th NBA training camp and he said on Tuesday during a pre-training camp news conference he’s more excited about this one than any other.

Higgins, a former NBA player and veteran top basketball official, is confident the team’s newcomers and holdovers will form a solid nucleus.

Higgins says the extraordinary offseason workout attendance – especially in the last month – has shown him how eager his team is to get started.

“As a former player myself, I know how hard it is to get guys into camp,” Higgins said. “And our guys have been here all summer. That’s really a positive for what we’re trying to accomplish.”

Realistic goals are a bit unclear at this point as some may see 30 wins as a reasonable expectation after last year’s 21-61 record under “one-and-done” head coach Mike Dunlap.

Neither Cho nor Higgins would quantify their expectations.

“We don’t want to put a number on anything,” Cho said when asked about an expected win total. “We want to get better each and every day.”

Said Higgins: “I would presume that we’re going to be much improved. But who knows what can happen with this team.”

For his part, Clifford is delighted at the improvements Cho, Higgins and majority owner Michael Jordan helped the team make in the offseason.

“We upped our talent level and we have a great deal of depth,” Clifford said.

Point guard Kemba Walker, off-guard Gerald Henderson and small forward Michael Kidd-Gilchrist are slated to return to the starting lineup, with Zeller and McRoberts competing for power forward and Jefferson expected to be the starting center.

With veterans Ramon Sessions, Jannero Pargo, Ben Gordon, Anthony Tolliver and Brendan Haywood expected to join youthful Jeff Taylor and Bismack Biyombo off the bench and it’s easy to see Clifford will have options.

It’s a chore Clifford embraces, though he also recognizes it’ll be tough.

“I haven’t been a head coach long, but what I’ve learned is I’ve got to play the guys who it feels right in here,” Clifford said while pointing to his heart. “We’ll work on that a lot. How we start the year may not be how we finish the year.

“But we brought back the right guys and we’ve added significant pieces.”

You can reach Richard Walker at 704-869-1841 or by twitter.com/JRWalk22